Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT) was taken to the hospital for an overnight stay on Thursday after feeling unwell, the senator’s office announced on Thursday night.
Leahy “was not feeling well and was taken to a Washington area hospital for tests, as a precaution,” his office said. “At the recommendation of his doctors, he is expected to remain overnight for observation.”
It’s unclear at the moment what exactly led to Leahy’s hospitalization.
Leahy’s absence hobbles his fellow Democrats’ paper-thin control over the evenly split Senate, with Vice President Kamala Harris as a tiebreaker vote.
The 82-year-old Democrat’s health has become a serious concern in recent years: He was admitted to the hospital last year to be treated for muscle spasms, and he had to undergo two surgeries this summer to repair a broken hip he’d sustained from a fall.
Leahy, who’s served a staggering 47 years in Congress, announced last November that he would retire at the end of his current term to “pass the torch to the next Vermonter who will carry on this work for our great state.”
Rep. Peter Welch (D-VT) is running for Leahy’s seat in the upcoming midterms and is heavily favored to win against GOP rival Gerald Malloy.
